With their loss to Iowa, Rutgers finished the season with a 15-2 (6-2 Big Ten) record, entering the Big Ten Tournament as the No. 2 seed.
On Friday, No. 3 Rutgers field hockey (15-2, 6-2) dropped their final regular season game to No. 8 Iowa (13-4, 4-4) 7-2. With their loss to the Hawkeyes, the Scarlet Knights finished the regular season with a 15-2 record and a 6-2 conference record, entering the Big Ten Tournament as the No. 2 seed.
In their season finale, junior Paulina Niklaus and graduate student Marique Dieudonne recorded goals on 12 of the Scarlet Knights’ shots. Niklaus has recorded back-to-back goals in her last two games, registering two on the season. Dieudonne’s goal marks the sixth of the season, tying for third on the team with senior Bridy Molyneaux.
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The Big Ten Tournament bracket is officially set.#RUFH earns the No. 2 seed and will play No. 7 seed and host Michigan in the Quarterfinals Thursday afternoon at 2 pm pic.twitter.com/JsVdYPrx72
Rutgers goalkeeper and captain Sophia Howard allowed seven goals on 12 Hawkeyes’ attempts. Howard finished the regular season with a 75.8 save percentage with five shutouts.
The Scarlet Knights kick off the Big Ten Tournament against the No. 7 seed and defending champions, the Michigan Wolverines, on Thursday at Phyllis Ocker Field in Ann Arbor, Michigan. The single-elimination tournament will run from November 2 to November 5, with games one through three taking place on Thursday and games four and five being on Friday.
Since the start of the fall athletics season, Rutgers fans have had plenty to cheer about.
Since the start of the fall athletics season, Rutgers fans have had plenty to cheer about. Field hockey has put together a historic 2023 campaign, while football has already matched their highest win total in ten years. However, they are not the only sports giving fans a reason to celebrate.
Rutgers men’s soccer has won two straight and is playing their best soccer of the season. They have been led by Jackson Temple, who has been a points machine. Women’s soccer has also had some success and recently beat Michigan. Allison Lowrey has led the way offensively with 15 points, including six goals.
While the fall season is far from over, the next few weeks will be crucial for Rutgers athletics as the playoff picture takes shape. If Rutgers athletics can continue its current success, a few Big Ten titles could be in store.
Scroll down and check out how Rutgers sports have been doing this fall!
During the first month of the college field hockey season, Rutgers have been one of the best teams in the country. They have gotten off to an 8-0 start and only allowed five goals. Due to their success, Rutgers is already getting some national attention.
In Tuesday’s Penn Monto/ NFHCA Division I Coaches Poll, Rutgers was ranked seventh. The rankings comprise the top 20 teams with a .500 or better record in the nation each week. This week’s ranking represented the second time Rutgers has earned a top ten ranking, moving up three spots.
While the season is far from over, the Scarlet Knights have been unbeatable. Last week, they faced No. 12 Penn State and La Salle and recorded back-to-back shutouts. They have been led by Sophia Howard, who has recorded four shutouts, and Puck Winter, who has 14 points.
As Rutgers looks to build on their success, they will aim to climb even higher in the Penn Monto/ NFHCA Division I Coaches Poll. The only other Big Ten teams ranked ahead of them are Northwestern and Iowa. Over their next three games, the Scarlet Knights will get a perfect opportunity to prove themselves as they are set to face ranked teams in Umass, Maryland, and Michigan.
Regardless of the outcomes, Tuesday provided a reminder of how far the program has come.
Rutgers field hockey gets a weekly honor from the Big Ten.
Fewer goalkeepers have been better through the first few weeks of the field hockey season than Rutgers Sophia Howard. The Australian native has posted a 7-0 record and led the Scarlet Knights to an 8-0 start. Last week, her impressive play continued as Howard was named the Big Ten Defensive Player of the Week.
Howard recorded back-to-back shutouts as Rutgers beat No. 12 Penn State and La Salle. Against the Nittany Lions, she made seven saves, her second-highest total of the season. Howard also became the first goalkeeper to post a shutout against Penn State during the 2023 campaign.
Additionally, against La Salle, Howard only made one save, but she recorded her fourth shutout of her junior campaign. It was the first time in eight games that La Salle had been held scoreless all season.
Congratulations go out to #RUFH goalkeeper Sophia Howard, who was named the Big Ten Defensive Player of the Week!
Sophia had two shutouts last weekend as RU blanked No. 12 Penn State and La Salle to improve to 8-0 on the season
Following her stellar week, Howard leads the Big Ten with a save percentage of .848. She is also third in the country and conference with a goals-against-average of 0.56. In her fourth year as a Scarlet Knight, Howard has taken her game to another level.
As the fall season continues, Howard will be a player to watch. She is only one win and shutout short of tying her career high with nine games left on the schedule before the Big Ten Tournament. As long as her recent play continues, the Scarlet Knights will be in good hands.
For Rutgers fall athletics this past week was full of memorable performances and the start of Big Ten tournament play.
For the majority of Rutgers fall athletics, this past week represented an end to the regular season. For the seniors, that means one last run as they look to end their careers on a high note. The past few days were full of highlights and memorable finishes as each team prepared for the next step of their season.
Men’s soccer finished the regular season with a loss, and women’s soccer lost in the Big Ten tournament quarterfinals. However, field hockey was a bright spot with a dominated Sunday afternoon against James Madison.
It was a tough week for Rutgers football as they traveled to Minnesota and could not get the offense going. However, they still have four games left this season and the chance to finish above .500.
With Big Ten tournament play in full swing and the NCAA tournament only weeks away for some, check out what is going on with fall sports around Rutgers!
Sophia Howard reminded the Korda sisters why they fell in love with the game in the first place. As for Howard, she got to meet her heroes.
When Sophia Howard landed in the Sarasota–Bradenton (Florida) International Airport a few weeks ago, she exclaimed, “Oh my God, this is the home of Nelly Korda!”
Nelly got a kick out of that.
Howard, 14, flew to Florida from Hudsonville, Michigan, to meet her idols, Nelly and Jessica Korda, as part of Dream On 3, a Charlotte, North Carolina-based non-profit organization. Howard, who was born without a right hand, met up with the American stars at The Concession Golf Club for a special practice session.
As the trio got to talking, the Kordas realized that Howard lived close to this week’s Meijer LPGA Classic and invited her out to their Tuesday practice round. The spunky Howard described the whole experience as surreal. The Kordas were reminded of why they fell in love with the game in the first place.
“The longer you’re out here you kind of forget how cool it is,” said Jessica. “To see it from somebody else’s perspective is really special.”
Howard said she and her father flipped over to an LPGA event a year or so ago and happened to see Jessica Korda pull off an impressive shot. The cameras then switched over to Nelly, who pulled off something equally memorable. Howard, who also plays softball, immediately turned to Google to learn more.
A rising freshman, Howard competes in adaptive junior tournaments in her area and said that high school golf begins on August 9.
“I may look different,” said Howard, “but I think I’m just another average person. I go out and do the game of golf how everybody else (does) and I don’t let that stop me. Just go out and kill it.”
Sophia Howard hits balls on the range at Concession. (Emby Taylor Photography)
Nelly said having Howard out at the Meijer makes her appreciate what she does for a living even more. Both sisters walked away extremely impressed with Howard’s swing, too. They especially made progress out of the bunker.
“I think that’s what we’ve missed too,” said Jessica, “not having fans or kids out week in, week out. Kind of took that a bit maybe for granted. But that was something that I always loved to see. I loved being able to interact with the kids and giving them the memory that they’ll either hold on to for a while or something that they will come back to maybe the next year and can see them after that.”
The Kordas, of course, could look to their parents, Petr and Regina, both world-class tennis players, for insight into life as a professional athlete. But if they could’ve spent time with other sports stars as a kid, like Howard did with them, who would they choose?
“I love Roger, Nadal, Tiger,” said Nelly. “I know Jess would say Lindsay Vonn.”
Both Nelly and Jessica are winners on the LPGA this season and in position to represent the U.S. at the Tokyo Olympics. Nelly is currently the top-ranked American at No. 4 and Jessica ranks 13th. Only four Americans can qualify to compete, and all must be ranked inside the top 15. Two events remain before the qualifying period ends on June 28.
While they won’t have their parents in Tokyo cheering them on due to COVID-19, they’re likely to hear from Howard on their new text thread.
“She’s very spunky and very happy,” said Nelly, “definitely rubs off on you.”
